Just one day after landing a former McDonald’s All-American in the transfer portal, new UNC head men’s basketball coach Hubert Davis landed his first five-star high-school prospect on Friday in forward Jalen Washington.

Washington is a 6-foot-9-inch forward from West Side High School in Gary, Indiana who is ranked as the No. 21 overall player in the Class of 2022 according to the 24/7 Sports Composite Rankings.

The lead recruiter for Washington was UNC assistant coach Sean May, a former national champion with the Tar Heels who is an Indiana native himself.

Washington becomes the third member of the Tar Heels’ 2022 recruiting class, joining three-star center Will Shaver and four-star guard Seth Trimble.

He fits right in with the type of big man Davis has pursued to this point through transfers and recruiting in his young head coaching career: those who show an ability to play both inside and outside.

As a junior last season at West Side, Washington averaged 13 points, six rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game while leading his team to the Indiana Class 4A state semifinals. He also shot 40 percent from three-point range.

Davis offered Washington a scholarship this past May, and he chose the Tar Heels over other offers from Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisville, Maryland Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Purdue and Stanford.

 

Photo via Instagram (Jalen Washington @w._jalen)

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